Because He Is My Brother
by angel-death-dealer
Summary: A series of moments in life for Troy's princes, and the events that brought them together so much. COMPLETED
1. Little Eyes Upon You

**This is my first attempt at a Troy fanfic. I have no idea about the ages, so I am just guessing them, but this is a collection of short stories about Hector and Paris growing up.**

**Sam**

**xx**

Six year old Hector and ten year old Cassandra sat at the breakfast table. They had long since finished their food, but no one was around to dismiss them, so they stayed at the table, talking about the new arrival.

"I think we've got a sister." Hector said. "A little sister."

"No." Cassandra said. "It's a brother. Mother had a boy."

"How do you know?" Hector asked.

"Because I do." Cassandra answered. "Why don't you want a brother."

"Yes! I do! Then I can teach him all kinds of neat tricks." Hector said proudly. "But if I have another sister, she might be like you, and then I can make up stories for her to listen to like you do for me."

"Hector, my stories are real." Cassandra said, almost sounding hurt.

"No they're not. Father says that you make them up." Hector said, putting emphasis on the word Father. He had always been Priam's pride and joy, being the only son and heir to the throne of Troy. Cassandra was more close to her mother.

"Hector. Cassandra."

They stopped their discussion and looked up to the doorway where King Priam of Troy stood in the doorway. "Father!" Hector cried excitedly, and ran across the room to stand in front of Priam. He had not seen his father all through the week, and his nurse had said that the King had been busy with their new arrival. Their mother's baby had been born, but they had not yet been allowed to see him or her.

"Good morning, my son, and daughter." Priam smiled down on them and embraced them. "Would you like to see your new sibling?"

Their faces lit up. "Oh yes, Father. Yes please."

Praim led them to his and Hecuba's chambers, where inside, she sat on the edge of the bed. At the end of the bed,was a wodden cradle, it had been there for some time, and Hector had wondered what it was for. Now though, he could see something moving around the blankets inside of it. Hecuba lifted Paris up, and seated her son in her lap so he could see over the cradle. Cassandra beside them, being tall enough to see without the help of an adult. Hecuba's soft voice drifted over them as they looked down into the cradle. "Hector, Cassandra, this is your new brother. His name is Paris."

Hector looked down on this new 'Paris' with a strange look on his face. "Mother, why is his face all red and screwed up?" He asked. Priam smiled at his question.

"You looked exactly the same when you were born, Hector."

"Did I?"

"Yes, my son." Prian answered. "Do you love your brother?"

Cassandra didn't answer, she just stared into the cradle with an odd expression. Hector was about to answer his father when Paris began to cry. Hector leaned foward, Hecuba's arms not letting him fall off, and put his hand into the cradle. Curious as to what the boy would do, Hecuba and Priam watched their son with great interest. Hector put his hand on the baby's hand, and kissed his forehead. "Do not cry, little brother. I am your big brother, my name is Hector. I will be a good brother, I'll look after you, and play games with you, but please don't cry."

Amazingly, Paris stopped crying, and looked up at his older brother. His tiny hand moved and his little fingers curled around one of Hector's.

"Mother! Father! Look!" Hector said excitedly.

"He must know who his brother is." Priam said proudly. "He knows you will look after him."

"Oh, I will Father, I will."

"Why?" Cassandra asked, Priam frowned at her for her question, but she did not see it.

Hector looked back down at where Paris's hand held his tightly, and deep brown eyes looked up at him. "Because he is my brother."


	2. That Wonderful Brother Of Mine

Hector ran through the halls eagerly, dodging the kitchen staff taking food through to the dining hall. A couple of the old women scolded him for this, but the seven year old was on a mission, and he did not stop running until he hit something head on. Falling on his behind roughly, he looked up to see what he had run into. Priam stood over him and gave a short sigh.

"Hector, my son, why are you running again?" He said, sounding exasperated, but thankfully, not angry.

Hector climbed to his feet and then brushed off his clothing. "I am sorry, Father."

"Does that explain why you are running?"

"No, father. I was trying to find Paris."

Priam smiled, as everything made sense to the aging man. Ever since Paris, now two years old, had learned to crawl on his hands and knees the previous month, he had followed his older brother around. It suprised the King to see Hector without his new found shadow.

"And what trouble has your brother got himself into today?" Priam asked.

"I don't know, Father. I haven't seen him all day."

Now that was definately suprising.

"Have you asked your nurse?"

Hector nodded quickly. "She said to ask Mother, but I can't find her either, Father."

Priam smiled, looking over Hector's shoulder, and seeing Hecuba standing down the hall. She was holding a squirming Paris in her arms, who had seen his brother and father and was trying to get to them. Hecuba gave up struggling against him, and placed him on the floor, even though she hated the idea of him roaming around on a floor where there was more mud that stone. Paris arranged himself so he could easily move, and then made his journey over to the others.

"It seems, my son, that your search is over." Priam commented and watched as a confused Hector looked around him.

"Father?"

"Look at your feet, my son."

Hector looked down, and saw Paris sitting at his feet, staring up at him with his wide brown eyes, a smile on his baby lips as he took hold of Hector's bare ankle and held tight. Hector laughed. "He found me instead." Hector told Priam.

"He found me. Because I am his brother, and he knows now."

"Knows what?" Priam asked.

"That I will always look after him, just like I told him."


	3. When You Thought I Wasn't Looking

Hector sat out in the courtyard with Paris. It was an unbearably hot summers day in Troy. Priam was in a meeting, and was coming to fetch them afterwards to tell them something important. Paris was two years old now, making Hector eight. Yet the infant was yet to learn how to walk, which was what Hector was teaching him now.

"Come on, Paris, you have to learn to walk." Hector told him. "Then we can play other games as well."

"Pawis cwawl." The younger boy answered, a puzzled look on his face.

Hector sighed. "No, Paris no crawl. Paris walk." Hector stood up and walked slowly in a circle around his brother. "See, walking. It's easy. Now you try it."

Paris lifted himself onto his podgy feet and moved to try and take a step, before falling back on his behind again. "Pawis cwawl." He repeated.

Hector put his head in his hands.

"Brother mad at Pawis?" Paris asked in his cute little voice. Hector lifted his head and shook it.

"No, I'm not mad Paris."

A commotion was heard from behind Paris. Hector looked over his brother's shoulder and saw a young man struggling with a small horse. The horse kept bucking, and almost struck the man four times before Hector got to his feet. "Paris. Be a good boy and stay here." Paris nodded and sat still while Hector approached the man and the foal.

"Prince Hector, stay away, my boy." An older man who often talked with Priam said as he tried to pull the boy away. "It is not safe."

Hector pulled away from the man's grasp and stood not two feet away from the pony. The other man had backed away now, and Hector was the closest to the raging animal. He held out his hands towards the animal. "I wont hurt you." He told it.

"HECTOR!"

Behind him, he heard his father's voice but he didn't back away from the horse. As soon as it stood still long enough, he put his hand on the pony's neck. It instantly stopped bucking and calmed down. Hector smiled. "See, I won't hurt you."

"Hector!" Priam's voice came from closer behind him now, and he kept his hand stroking the horses mane as he turned.

"Father I-"

"I saw what you did Hector."

Hector bowed his head. "I am sorry, father."

"Do not be sorry, my son." Priam said, placing his hand atop Hector's head. "I was just worried you would be hurt. You are unharmed though, so I have no reason to be angry." Hector smiled. "That was a brave thing you did, Hector. It was a waste though."

Hector raised his head. "No!" He said in suprise.

"Hector. It is a dangerous horse, It must be sent away."

Hector looked at the horse in disbelief. It didn't seem so dangerous. The foal butted his upper arm with his nose, almost begging him. "Father, please. Let me keep him,"

"I cannot, Hector, there is a chance it may injure you also." Priam told him.

"But I can calm him, Father. I swear it, if he hurts another, I shall send him away myself."

Priam looked at his's eldest son's pleading face. He was about to disagree when a voice rang at his side and Paris jumped up at Hector. "Hector. Pawis saw you make horse nice again."

Hector looked over to where he had left Paris sitting. For Paris to crawl all this way at his speed, he would have followed Hector almost immediately.

"Paris, how did you get over here?" Hector asked.

Paris smiled up at Hector. "Pawis walk. Walk like Hector." Paris walked around Hector like Hector had done only a few minutes ago to him. "Brother says try, so Pawis try."

Priam watched his youngest son walking and lifted him up. "My son, you can walk!" Paris laughed and Priam set him back on the floor, beaming down at him with pride. "You are a true Prince of Troy." Priam told him, before turning on Hector. "Is this true, my son. Did you teach your brother to walk."

"Hector show Pawis. Pawis be like Hector." Paris said, sitting down tiredly on the floor at his father's feet.

"Yes, father."

Priam smiled. "Then you may keep the horse." Hector's face lit up. "On the condition that it be exiled if it causes any danger or injury."

Hector nodded. "Yes father."

"Come inside now, it is time that you met someone."


	4. The Longest Time

Hector sat on the steps of the palace, elbows resting on his knees, holding his head up in his hands. He faced towards the sea, watching the waves lap at the distant shore. He liked to watch the sea, it calmed him down, but it wasn't working now.

He was ten years old now, no longer the boy who used to like playing games every moment the sun was in the sky. He had become a true prince of Troy. He was showing promising talent with a sword, enough to rival those eight years older than him, practically twice his height. His horse, which was now trained equally to the others in the stables, yet would bare no other rider than himself, was faster than any other that he raced against. He began to act more like his father, taking on more responsibility than he had ever done. Of course, Priam encouraged this, wanting Hector to be prepared for taking the throne, but his mother was not keen on Hector baring the same responsibilites as a man would.

He had grown much taller as well, his head reached his father's upper arm now, quickly gaining on his shoulder. People marvelled over how much he looked like Priam during his youth, and it was something he had grown tiresome of hearing. Even the girls were starting to stare after him.

Not that this counted for anything any more.

He had just been told that he was betrothed. _Betrothed! _He was only ten, he didn't want to get married! His father had taken him into the meeting with King Eetion today, he was from Thebe, and he had been introduced to Princess Andromache. She was a pretty girl, a year younger than him. She spent the whole time hiding behind her father, so he hadn't really seen her much. She was shy; at least Hector had been noble and stood beside his father proudly. He had even kept his composure when Priam told him that he was going to marry this girl one day.

Priam said that he would never be king unless he got married, and produced an heir. Of course, he hadn't fully understood _how _this heir would appear, and what it had to do with being married. So, Priam had explained to him, and that had disturbed him even more than getting married. After all, what sort of person with their sanity would want to do that? The only thing that had convinced him was that if he didn't then Paris would have to take the throne, and they had no idea yet of what Paris would be like in a political situation. Hector could deal with them, he had much reasoning for being young, but he didn't like it. It bored him. But he loved Troy.

He watched the people from Thebe down at the bottom of the steps, talking to his mother, who had Paris and their cousin Briseis, running about her feet, playing. Andromache watched them, but did not join in. Briseis had come to live with them a few months ago, and since then, it was like Paris had a twin. She would follow him everywhere, much like Paris would to Hector. So it was no longer just the two of them. There were now three.

Paris spotted his older brother, and came up the steps towards him, Briseis following suit. "Hector!" the four-year-old cried excitedly. Hector didn't even smile when they reached him. He carried on watching Andromache, until she looked up at him and he looked away from her. "Hector, want to play?" He asked.

Paris was steadily becoming an attractive boy as well now. Lots of women were commenting to Priam how handsome the youngest Prince was, even though he was no where near manhood.

"No, not today, Paris."

Paris looked crestfallen, as did Briseis, but the impact those words had on the boy were unbelievable. He had been refused by his mother and father before for playmates, but _never _had he been refused by Hector. He stared at Hector in horror.

"But Hector always plays!" Paris objected.

"Please?" Briseis piped up.

"Sorry, not now. Go play with your toys." Hector suggested, still sounding distant and sad.

Paris stomped his foot. "First Andomche not play, now Hector not play!" Hector wasn't even going to bother to correct his brother's pronounciation of Andromache's name.

"Hector's busy," Hector explained.

"But Hector not doing anything." Briseis noticed.

"I know, but I have to soon."

"What?" Paris questioned. "What does Hector do?"

"Nothing!" He snapped. "I want to be alone!"

Hector walked away. Paris looked like he was about to cry, but Briseis did, she howled when Hector snapped at them, it scared her because he never did it. Hector had not taken three steps away before he turned back and embraced his cousin in one arm and Paris in another. When he had calmed down, they each sat on one of his knees. Hector wiped a tear away from Briseis's cheek.

"I am sorry, Briseis. I did not want to make you cry." He apologized. "I am sorry to you too Paris."

"Hector angry with Pawis?" He has still not been able to form the sounds of his name properly, and was becoming a trademark.

"No, I'm not angry with either of you. I am mad at myself." Hector explained.

"Why?" Briseis asked.

"I don't know." He lied. "But I will know later."

When they asked him again, Hector did play with them. Once she had seen Hector playing with them, Andromache also played when they asked her to. Priam and Eetion watched them playing together, knowing that despite first impressions, they had made a good match.


End file.
